Finesse
by DJ Broken Wang
Summary: SUMMARY: Letting go is really hard. A fanfiction of GOU KITAOHJI and his tragic romance. First time writing in One Outs for two friends. OOC/Slight AU. R&R
**This is my first time in attempt to write a fanfiction out of my comfort zone. Although One Outs is not a popular anime, I could still defend that t is one of the bast manga I've ever read. It doesn't matter if no one's reading this (due to its unpopularity), but I want to express my gratitude to those who took their time in writing here :)**

 **This fanfic is dedicated to my newfound friend, KeiZiahKnight1886, who took her time praising my work (even if I tjhink my work is an epic failure). Girl, this is my gift to you. Please, don't cry.**

 **Also, this fanfic is dedicated to my another newfound friend who I recently met through this site, Alyx Engel. This one is written in English, though. I hope you don't mind.**

 **I don't know if this would turn out just fine, though. So please, let me know what you think.**

 **Disclaimer: One Outs is an anime and manga originally created by Shinobu author is only responsible for the creation of the fanfic and nothing else.**

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

 _"So I guess this is it... Heh."_

 _"... Please, don't say that!"_

 _"Gou-koi... What's with the face?"_

 _"... Hic-hic..."_

 _"Aww... Shhh... Stop crying, Gou - AGH!"_

 _"Hey! Hey, don't you dare joke like that! Kei? - DOCTOR! DOCTOR! SOMEONE! ANYONE! HELP ME! MY WIFE - "_

 _"Gou... enough, I just... w - want... hah - "_

 _"Don't give up, honey. I'm here for you - HEY! NO, NO, NO!"_

 _" - m - my eyes... I want to sleep..."_

 _"No, don't sleep - Look, the doctor's here! See?"_

 _"Gou... I love you..."_

"NO!" A long, agonizing scream echoed all over the bedroom. Or rather, his bedroom.

 _It was supposed to be theirs._

"Dad?" From the gap of the opened door, a mop of long black hair appeared. Then, a girl's face emerged.

The girl spoke, "Dad, are you okay?"

The now father of the girl, Kitaooji Gou of the Mariners, just stared on the ceiling, something on the overhead lamp was interesting.

"Kitaooji Gou-chi!" Kitaooji's daughter called his whole name, louder this time, as the room became bright.

Rays of sunlight permeated across the room, overwhelming the calm dimlight while disturbing his eyesight.

"Ah!" The ravenhead groaned tiredly as he covered his eyes with the comforter. "Close the curtains, Akemi. It burns..."

"Ha-ha! So now you're the vampire, daddy?! Alright... " She then stood on the left side of his bed, bent her knees, and jumped towards her father's hiding body under the comforters while yelling, "Cannonball!"

"Ugh!" The man faked his hurt. "Ouch! Vampire hunter Akemi-sama! Please, spare me!"

Akemi giggled as she did her best 'kicking daddy's butt' and said, "No! Vampire daddy should give up, because... I will kick daddy's butt if he did not give me breakfast!"

Tired of his daughter's playfulness, Kitaooji carefully slid the top half of his body as he said "Daddy will not make you breakfast, bleh-bleh."

"Eh? Why?" She suddenly stopped, when she was overwhelmingly covered with the same comforter he was hiding earlier.

"Because I'm going to eat you first! Nyahaha!"

Then, a series of laughs and squeals echoed in the room.

After that, he let his daughter escape from the white obstacle, only for his face to be tortured by her 'hurtful' pinches.

"Daddy! Seriously, you have to wake up... We are going to be late."

In response, he grabbed her as he answered. "Eh... No... "

As michievous as he was, the girl put both of her hands on her nose. "Ew! Daddy's a dogbreath!"

As she said that, the single father took note of the characteristics he missed when she was still there. The shape of her face was definitely his, but her high cheekbones were from her mother. Akemi had his nose and his eyebrows, although she has her mother's cute dimples. She also had his hair color, but its straightness was definitely hers.

Akemi is the gift of their love.

His and hers.

 _... I missed you, Kei._

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

 _It was love at first sight._

He was just a college freshman, and she was an exchange student. They were studying in different courses - he was taking accountancy and she was majoring in Japanse - yet they were classmates in one subject, which was world litearature.

Their first meeting was one of the most embarassing moment of his life. If he thought about it, he would simply facepalm and forcefully forget that day.

Yet he could not do that, because that was one of his most precious moments.

"Great! I'm so late."

He was pacing back and forth in front of the bulletin board in the school's lobby. After looking at his wristwatch, he panickly placed his his index fingers on the school's map while he sloppily read the places he pointed. He did all that while he was muttering, "I hate big schools, I never should have enrolled here - "

"Excuse me? Hello?"

A hand landed on his right shoulder, making him stop on his vigorous search and he brusquely shoved his right shoulder as if he was looking for a fight. When he faced the person, he was surprised.

In fron of him stood a woman with short straight raven locks. He could still remember from the fragment of his memory her state of dress: white sweatshirt, denim jeans, a lavender scarf, and an old book being carried by her left arm.

"Sorry, did I scare you?"

Out of shock, he place his left hand over his mouth as he spoke, "Scare me, scare - no! I'm not scared - I was scared you were scared me scaring you - scaring me - "

The woman giggled, making him stop and stare at her for a short moment. When he saw her looking at him, he blushed as he bowed his head. "E - Eh! I'm sorry for staring - I'm so rude - "

"No, no, no! It's okay, really. I'm the one being rude here... " The other said as she waved her unoccupied hand frantically.

As he stood up straight, he saw her right hand outstretched. He then looked at her face.

In his eyes, she was the most beautiful creature he had ever met. Despite of the fact that she had her bangs hiding her huge forehead and her glasses framing her eyesight.

"I'm Mari. Mari Kei."

"I'm glad to meet you. My name is Kitaooji Gou, a freshman." He responded, outstretching his left hand to shake hers.

"Oh, really? Cool... I'm a transferee, though. I just came here, so I really hope I could find new friends here. But I found you, so I'm happy!"

She was silly and simple-minded, back then.

"Actually, you are way cooler than I am. And I'm not that good. You see, I'm a sports scholar."

His newfound friend, Kei, let go of his hand as she placed it to the book she had been holding. "Psh... You are also an athletic scholar, which makes you real popular more than I am. I'm just a plain - "

RIIING!

Suddenly remembering the main concern, Kitaooji panicked. His face paled a sheet of white. Noticing this, Kei asked him promptly. "You seemed anxious of your first class. May I know what subject you are supposed to take this morning?"

Still in panic, he answered. "Its... World Literature."

"Oh, goody!" He was suddenly dragged by the ravenhead. "We're actually classmates! Here, come with me. I have my bag placed there already, and I just borrowed this book. Who would've thought I would find my first friend today?!"

 _Who would've thought I would find my future wife that day?_ He thought.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

"Dad!" Akemi said, now gripping his nose. "Stop spacing out! You promised me you're going to perform the piano for the parents' assembly today!"

He then stared on his daughter's eyes - as sharp as his but as warm as hers - and he almost sobbed. But he quickly swallowed it down so that the kid wouldn't be worried. An idea popped in his head.

Slowly, he looked away from his daughter as he said, "Oh? Did your daddy promised that?" He then placed his pointing finger on his cheek that was facing his daughter as he continued, "I cannot remember... Hmmm... "

Akemi pouted while closing her arms, but upon seeing her father's pointing finger tapping on his cheek, she rolled her eyes. "Daddy, really? A kiss? You know I'm just starting to be a middle school student, right?"

His daughter's reaction was really amusing. Really defiant, _just like her mother_. But he mocked the kid as he closed his eyes like he was going to sleep. "Oh, I really forgot - "

Out of exasparation, his daughter kissed his cheek with an exaggeration of 'Mwaaah!' at the end. He then faced his daughter with a smile and he said, "Oh yeah, I remember now." His little imp of a daughter stared back at him with an expression, saying 'Really?'

Kitaooji then sent his apology by patting her head, as he pushed her off the bed. "Now, run along now, little strawberry. Take a bath while I prepare our breakfast."

She then walked towards the door as she said. "Okay."

As the door closed, the curly black-haired man then leaned towards the left side of the bed.

 _The side where she usually sleeps._

He then hugged her pillow rather tightly, as he burried his face over the soft surface, while he supressed his hoarse voice crying over his dream.

 _Why?_

 _Why?_

 _Why?_

 _Why did you leave me?_

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

 _Finesse_ is her favourite music piece she could play in piano. He thought its the best music fitting for her.

She is not ugly. To his eyes, she was more than a goddess.

If only she could remove those stupid glasses, she would be popular in no time.

However, Kitaooji, Kei's friend, didn't want them to see that. He should be the first one to see her. No, scratch that.

He should be the only one to look at her unconditionally.

And that was the moment he fell head over heels with Mari Kei.

He was in his second year, and her, graduating. In the two whole years of his college life, they were stuck to each other like a paper to glue. They were best buds. _For her_ , that is.

But he thinks otherwise.

She was the first person to recognize his batting talent, she taught him more than once of how to hit changeup pitches and breaking balls. She motivated him to reach his dream of becoming a baseball pro. But most of all, she unconsciosly taught him to appreciate it.

And at the very last day, he realised his true feelings.

After confirming being picked at the very first draft for the baseball league Fingers, he went back to the campus to look for her.

Consequently, the day of the first draft for the baseball league was also the day the graduating students received their diplomas.

"Hey, Amami-san. Have you seen Kei?" Kitaooji, in his Fingers' uniform, hastily asked his fellow first drafter who happened to be also included in the graduating batch.

Amami faced him as he took in his own happiness of being a graduate. He stared at the sophomore, then said, "Graduation ceremony just ended... She's in the hurry, she might be at home by this moment... "

"Ah... okay... " The other then bowed his head to his senior as he tiredly dragged his feet.

The chinky-eyed observant already knew his undying compassion to his co-senior. So he called out to him, giving him a false hope about the music room. Who knows she might be there.

Following his advice, the sad male went to the music room. Suddenly, his ears picked a familiar sound.

 _Finesse._

And as excited as he was, he hurriedly went to the music room.

When he opened the door, she was there, just in time to close the piano. And as he called out her name, Kei stood up to face him, as she greeted him -

"Hello, _Kitaooji-san_."

Staring at her as if she had grown another head, Kitaooji froze infront of her as he answered, "Hey!... That's... too much of a respect there, huh?"

"Um... well... " She shrugged, "I guessed it is supposed to be that way. Since you got what you deserved!... You are popular now... "

She saw him looking downwards, but she continued. "You have your own name now... Sooner or later, you will have your own fanbase, and then you could freely choose a cuter, more decent woman than good old me - "

Suddenly, she was enveloped by his tight embrace. Stiff as a board, she stared at him. Never had she thought he could look at her... _longingly?_ She supposed. That was the first time she had noticed of his booming stature. He was now taller than her, even if she was older than him.

"Kei... I don't know what you're talking about... " He then used his right hand to remove her glasses as he continued. "... I don't want them, _I want you..._ " He fixed the bangs covering her eyes as he tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "... You are beautiful... " Then he placed his hand on the base of her nape as he put his thumb over her jawline while he pulled her closer.

As he slowly descended downwards, he said, "I love you, Kei... " and their lips met.

Their first kiss was another prescious moment he wants to treasure for eternity. But he would never forget the next words of promise they shared.

 _"You will never be happy with me."_

 _"That's the risk I am willling to take."_

 _"Are you willing to wait? I'm going back to my home for two years. Can you do that?"_

 _"Don't you trust me?"_

 _"Kiss me and we have a deal."_

 _"Okay... "_

That's how fine she was.

And that's how his colorful life began.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

Pin-pon!

After instructing his daughter to identify the human (they were still playing Vampire VS Vampire Hunter), he continued his work in the kitchen.

"Daddy! It's Uncle T and two unidentified humans!" Her voice hollered all over the house. It was very unusual; for a little girl, she sure has a very loud voice.

After the sound of the door opening and closing, four sets of muffled foot sounds tapped on their wooden floors. One of them was tapping loudly and frantically. Kitaooji sighed as he prepared their table.

"Akemi! I told you not to run around the house!" The ravenhead reprimanded as he busied himself preparing two, no, five bowls of rice.

Akemi walked in the kitchen to assist her father preparing the dining table. She lifted up a tray of five tea glasses and a kettle of warm oolong tea as she nonchalantly answered, "Dad, I didn't ran. I just jogged in the hallways." She the laughed obnoxiously, which made him almost drop the tray of rice he was carrying.

He sweatdropped, "Akemi... what should I do with you... "

"Nice apron, Kitaooji!"

"It would have been pink and frilly, I told you it would look good on you... "

Two different voices were added as the other three went in the dining area across the kitchen aisle. When he looked up, recognition and happiness spread all over his face.

"Taiyo-san, Junichi-san... and Toua... "

Realization struck on his face like a lightening. "Hey! We don't need bodyguards to go there! It's just an ordinary event in school!"

Three sets of chuckles echoed as the three of them - rudely and mockingly - sat on the mats in laid by the short dining table, without any permission to the father of one. He just exhaled deeply before he reminded his daughter about proper table etiquette in front of his close friends. Though, the blonde cousin-in-law on his wife's side rebutted. "Hey, hey _Gou-chan_. No need for etiquette, we don't have that. In addition, I was not the one who let his own child call the older people 'Uncle T and two unidentified humans.'"

"Uncle T... " His adorable daughter sat beside him as she poured her own tea. "I hate to burst your bubble, but we were just playing 'Vampire VS Vampire Hunter' as usual. You're just taking it so seriously. Come on Uncle T, stop being sensitive!"

The two other visitors smirked as Tokuchi shook his own head.

"So much for being cool, Toua." Kitaooji smiled satisfactorily, glad that his blonde family and friend tasted his own brand of medicine.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

It was the first time he felt defeated.

He thought joining the king Mariners by means of trade would help him fulfill his achievement. Yes, he was happy he was ranked third with the highest BA (Batting Average), together with Amami Taiyou as second Takami Itsuki as the first; at least his talent was well-appreciated. However, ever since he joined his alma mater team Fingers, he felt the pressure of being monopolised by the Pacific Champion Team for ten thousand of a lifetime, those king Mariners. So, he was exhilarated when he was one of the five to be traded to the champions.

Finally, his fulfillment was near.

But his dream was short-lived. Just when he was transferred, that team lost its brilliance throughout the baseball world due to its loss to the forever B-class team of the underdogs, the Lycaons.

He was not that devastated, though. The championship could still be within their reach... just not this time, yet. And he was not thinking about that. What he was concerning about was the matter he had in hand.

The physical manifestation of his other dream was standing in front of him.

"Hey, Gou."

"K - Kei!"

She was standing on the nearest bleachers, two yards away from him.

It was so convinient, for he stood as the first baseman, he was the nearest to where she stood. Though as he yelled out, both the Mariners' and the Lycaons' players glanced to his direction, only for them to be struck wide-eyed as they let him jump (what an unbelievably powerful adrenaline rush) the benches and the metal barricades, just to reach her.

That was also the moment he got the worst shock of his life.

"Mari Kei. Could you tell that hormonal teenager to not blatantly show off your public display of attention?"

As they turned around, Kitaooji sensed the dread that had been pooling in the pit of his stomach.

"Toua nii-nii!"

Good thing the game already ended.

But, his nightmares had just began.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

"All I ask is - "

"IF! This is my last night with you-o-o-o... " An off-key shout sang along with the music as the five people rode a six-seater car. This was already the third song the loud-mouthed girl sang all throughout the drive.

"Nooo... " Kawanaka could not help but to place both of his hands on his ears to muffle the agonizing voice of the kid. "Please, make it stop... "

Amami just chuckled as he consoled his friend in a harsh way. "Sorry, none can do." He then sang along with his little godchild to her favourite artist.

"Take me by the hand while - "

" - while we do what lovers do." The agonized Mariners' pitcher finally gave in sang along.

Just behind the driver's seat, the spiky-haired ex-gambler-turned-out-company-president spoke softly. "Gou... you're a great father... I'm sure she's proud of you."

In front of him, the curly black-haired batter of the Mariners smiled sadly as he simply wiped his tears which stubbornly stained his face.

His Finesse also loved the songs of Adele, and he could not help but to bit back his sadness for the sake of his little vampire hunter.

The whole car ride was now filled with five voices singing the rest of the song.

"'Cause what if I never love again?"

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

He just have to expect the worst things come from good packages. Tokuchi Toua is Mari Kei's cousin, and they were really close. It could not also help that he badmouthed him on the past few games in front of the public. This blonde gambler might use it to his own advantage.

However, the next words spoken by his sharp tongue made him see red.

"My cousin is a highly-bred lady from a prestigious family. Commoners like you are not supposed to get your filthy hands off her. Pauper, you don't deserve even her grace."

"Tokuchi, isn't it bad enough?... You know, you - well - we... already defeated the Mariners - " Ideguchi, Lycaons catcher as well as their voice of reason, tried to convince their infuriating teammate, together with the other players of both persons involved. Green, white, and blue uniforms' colors scattered all over the Mariners' training room.

Suddenly, the person of interest walked briskly towards the blonde, pulling his collar so that they could intimidate the other eye-to-eye.

"What the hell is your problem? I know what we did to you crushes your pride to pieces... and it feels good to hit your impossible-to-hit pitches... " He the gripped the collar harder as he pulled the other towards him. "But she has nothing to do with this!"

"Nothing to do with this, I wonder... " Tokuchi snickered as he shoved the other's grip on his collar forcefully. "Then let me tell you something you might need to know... "

He then sneered with his glaring malicious eyes. "Your 'supposed to be lover' is already bethrotled... to me."

Kitaooji's eyes widen with hurt, as well as the others' faces frozen in shock and bewilderment. Words of indiscretion were passed among the mouths of the players in hushed sentences. Surprisingly, all of the Mariners' and Lycaons' thoughts were centered on the two. Yet, they heightened their senses for the fight that might ensue.

"Were you hurt, oh great batter Kitaooji?" The Lycaons' ace just impassively took a cigarette and blew a column of smoke on the other's face. Satisfied with his reaction, he continued. "Well, well. If you think about it, they made a good choice... "

"They made a good choice, well, that's a sad choice for me... " Kawanaka muttered, only to be blocked by Amami's hand as he signaled the fight as personal and not team-related.

"You prided yourself on your name as 'I can hit whatever pitch comes to me,' when actually... you failed to do it..."

He then laughed, his tone like knives piercing his soul. After a laugh, he took another long drag of the nicotine stick and exhaled on his face.

"Too bad... I am the better man."

A fist landed on the smoker's left cheek, as the owner of it was blazing in fury. Kitaooji cursed, while Tokuchi stood up like nothing happened. The people nearest them held them back, mostly held the hothead back.

The blonde chuckled upon hearing the curse from the other. "Kitaooji... your dastardly-childish attitude would be the most beautiful reason of your defeat someday - "

"Stop it, Tokuchi!" Warned Ideguchi.

"Shut up, Tokuchi! I've been hearing nonsense from you!" Yelled Takami who was restraining the fuming Kitaooji.

"Hah!" The blonde snapped his head upwards, staring at the batting prodigy. "Ain't that true? You have been teammates since a month ago, and he was acting like a brat already."

He then looked at Brooklyn and Thomas as he asked, "Did you two like his treatment at you?" He looked at Brooklyn. "... Yo... could you accept your nickname as 'Giant Monkey?'"

"That's getting personal!" Yelled Takami.

But he still continued. "You are too selfish... _No matter what you hit and hit... can never please everyone._ Even if you treat them like garbage for your own benefit - "

BLAG!

A fierce kick landed on his abdomen, as the ravenhead batter forced forced himself out of his teammates' grasp. Screaming profanities to the other, he lunged towards him. Two punches were already blown when two sets of frantic jogs neared them.

"What the - Hey! Could anyone please stop them?!" Kojima tried to weave himself between the two, to no avail.

While physical separation could not douse the fire, it was her voice which made Kitaooji pause on what he was doing.

Both of them glanced at her as all noises stopped. Suddenly, Kei fainted as she fell downwards. Good thing Amami was the nearest, catching her in no time.

However, that event was only the beginning of his nightmares.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

"Your daddy going to play piano?" Kawanaka asked the litte girl staring at the scenery beyond the car window. In response, the girl noded her head in confirmation. Behind her, Amami was talking to the person on the other line of the phone.

"How many are you there, Brook?" Amami asked as he glanced to the blonde sitting across hir right. When he got his attention, he mouthed 'everyone' towards him. Tokuchi just chuckled as he faced the driver's back.

"Seems you're goning to have quite an audience, Kitaooji-boy. Good luck." He greeted.

"Don't remind me." The driver muttered as he stared at the red light flashing in front of them.

"Akemi?" Kawanaka called out, as the little girl turned around to face him with difficulty (due to the seatbelt, he might get killed by her father for making her uncomfortable). When she did, he asked, "How many minutes each parent must perform?"

"Five to seven minutes, I think?"

She then asked her father if he could handle that long, in which he smiled while saying that he already had. She then turned away as she continued their neglected animated conversation with the man with the fastest forkball.

"How long are you going to make us wait?!" A voice of a large man boomed over the speakers of the were some background noises with people groaning, and another with Takami and Ideguchi apologizing.

"Sorry, Brook," Amami rolled his eyes as he responded. "Its not like the traffic will going to move by itself."

While waiting for the go signal, the designated driver on a black-striped white polo took off his glasses and wiped out the mist being collected on the lenses as he called out to the second-rated batter. "Taiyou-san... Tell the Brooklyn 'if he wants to contribute to traffic decongestion, he could invent flying cars to save us.'"

As Amami relayed his message (and the foreigner yelled much to the other's chagrin, which is not surprising anymore), his daughter giggled as she outstretched the palm of her hand to her father. He then high-fived and patted her head after.

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

After a year of their struggles and mishaps, Kitaooji could say that he was happy that he now obtained her 'I do.' And that was the most amazing time in his entire life. They were already married and she was expecting for three months. He could say he had it all!

Not knowing that there is a big hurdle to skip on.

"... She has a weak heart. If she were to be let on with the pregnancy, both of them might be in grave danger. It is best if this did not happen in the first place." The doctor explained when he talked to the expecting father.

Too shocked to reply, he just let himself to be patted to his back two times and left him be.

That day was also the day they had their first real fight.

Later that evening, he seriously asked Kei about her medical condition while leaving him hanging to the secrecy. She just lightly laughed and boasted that she was alright. But she conceded as she finally told him the truth.

Apparently, the reason of the former engagement with her cousin was only a guarantee of her safety with her they believed about incenstous intercourse resulting with children with disabilities, they were certain the two would never be involved in thise acts. They want to keep the safety of the future CEO of their family's multi-national company. But, since she wants to have her own children, she stepped down as the company head and passed it down to Tokuchi Toua.

Tokuchi the gambler as a company president was a shock enough, but the implication of her pregnancy bothered Kitaooji more. And he could still remember their first heavy argument.

"What if I want you to abort the child?"

With a defiant face, she countered, "And let it die?! No!"

"You are going to die!"

"I doesn't matter, as long as the product of our love springs - "

"But I love you - "

"You know what? Kitaooji. San... YOU'RE SELFISH!"

A series of shouting and broken glassware echoed all over the house as the two fought.

And that didn't end there.

Kitaooji slept outside their bedroom for several nights, and Kei began to be silent. And because of being parasympathetic, the man ate more than he normally did. His eating habits and stress was being questioned by Amami once, which he vehemently denied.

He still had the talent of a great batter, but his hits were becoming harder and harder. The peak of it was when his team fought against the BlueMars, and he hit Yoshikuni's pitch with a grand slam.

Although they had to pay for the damages he made to the broken backscreen.

There was that moment when he completely lost his cool over Brooklyn, when he made fun of him being fat. Until now, he wasn't feeling guilty of knocking the large man unconscious and stepping the other's abdomen three times to be satisfied.

Finally, he conceded his childish unsettlement with his wife in the middle of seventh month. It was when he was unselfishly called by her just to feel her stomach. Upon feeling the fetus' large kick he felt the contentment of being a father.

"The baby... The baby is kicking! Oh - she kicked again."

"Yes... " He cried tears of joy.

Upon feeling her warm hands caressing his face, he hugged her as he cried on her shoulder, apologizing about his ridiculous demands. The short-haired woman forgave him as she kissed his face, even if he looked like a schoolkid with a snot on his nose. Well, they could still cherish the last moments of being together while she was still months away from childbirth.

 _But all things must come to an end._

It was now in the middle of the ninth month, anytime Kei might burst. Figuratively.

The expecting father was really agitated. It was the fourth time this week Kei had been brought to the hospital because of hypertension and palpitations in the heart. Black circles began to appear around his eyes as his cheeks began to deflate a bit.

His irresponsibility towards his health became noticeable when he took a shower with his co-teammate, Mizuhashi.

As he was taking his shirt off, the younger man asked, "Kitaooji-san... You're not taking a diet, aren't you?"

He glanced at the bleached head; he saw him looking at his torso, so he looked at himself in front of the mirror. And that's when he saw some of his ribs appearing he finally took notice that he was really stressed. These were especially noticeable if he raised his hands. It was really bad, because Mariners' uniforms consisted of white and gray only. The media might get caught an idea about his 'addiction,' even if he did not have any.

But he kept it in himself as he chucked his own shirt to the other's head. "That's nothing... Just keep the shirt!"

"No way!" The younger one exclaimed as he chased him around the lockers.

His body physique did not affect his exceptional batting, still. If more, his hits became stronger. It was probably because of his sudden anxiety when his mind drifted to his wife back home.

And for the first time of his baseball career, after three years of being runner-ups to the dogs, Chiba Mariners, They now took hold of the championships!

They won unbelievingly. His grand slam contributed to that, as well as his three-runs that he kept on adding. they should be thankful for that.

However, the team still have to pay for the damages he made to the backscreen... and one of the bleachers. And to the Lycaons, nonetheless.

Nothing coukld replace his happiness on that day...

But, as we all know, life is not full of rainbows and unicorns. That, and every ups has its own downs.

Yes, they won - _but at what cost?_

The Mariners were having their celebration in Chiba Princess Hotel, when Manager Iwano hurriedly ran across the white-tiled halls. He was looking for Kitaooji Gou, who was currently out of sight. After minutes of frantic searching (with the help of Amami, Thomas, Brooklyn, and Kojima - surprisingly, all of the players of Lycaons were too sport to join the party which originally was for the winners), they found him in the males' restroom restlessly pacing around and gripping his cellphone. He no longer wore the team's uniform, but he looked like a lost child on his disheveled appearance - unkempt hair, wide round eyes, untucked top, and wrinkled pants.

"What the hell?! Kitaooji, WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING HERE?!" Manager Iwano scolded.

His appearance was mortifying enough. But when he looked up, the five were utterly shocked. Unconscious tears kept on flowing out and glistening his fearful cheeks. He was incredibly pale. And not to mention, his lips made constant trembles as well as the rest of his body.

"I... I can't - " He finally answered as he dropped to the ground. "I'm... scared, coach."

Oh, how he looked weak back then.

His college senior remained silent as the other three co-Mariners spouted some nonsense which only supported his fear further.

"Hey, Kitaooji - " Kojima tried to talk some sense, but a new voice beat him to it.

"How manly."

All their gazes went to the blonde man in white casual top, leaning on the restroom's doorframe. Nevbertheless, he continued.

"You... Letting your wife face the problems by her own... yeah. Is that how a man supposed to act?"

The infuriating blonde then stoof in front of the ravenhead as he spoke. " Gou... You are not the only one who is scared right now... Didn't you pledge to protect my cousin? Then, be her emotional wall."

To say the least, the words ignited him.

"Emotional wall, my foot... " He then stood up, grabbing the other's collar. "Stop chastising me like a kid. I'm a man."

"Now, that's more like it." Tokuchi grinned.

oooOOO***Finnesse***OOOooo

To say the least, the blonde's taunting sparked bravery within Kitaooji's spirit. However, his resolve weakened when he saw her in the hospital's bed. He just met up with Kawanaka who was rewarded a rest after pitching a no-hit game on the second game against the Lycaons, and Takami who had a day off. Surprisingly, the batting prodigy chose this day to watch over the pregnant woman with the ex-Fingers' pitcher. Although he wasn't very appreciative, he couldn't stop being suspicious due from the jealousy slowly worming out of his heart when the latter of the two used to have a crush on Kei.

He even was the one who took an effort to call him that she was already giving birth.

And when he was there face to face with his wife on an oxygen mask and wires sticking from her torso to an EKG machine, his fate was already crashed with cold and harsh reality. He was rather mortified when she forced on a normal labor than an operation.

 _I want to experience a real childbirth_ , she said.

The gods must be punishing him right now.

"Gou... I'm scared... " She said, her face contorted in pain.

He gripped her hand and he leaned his head to kiss her lips. Then, he said "I'm here, Kei... You'll be alright."

Kitaooji internally cringed.

 _Get real!_

Truth to be told, he was _really_ scared. Scared of the complications after childbirth, scared of bad parenting, scared of what would he answer if his child asked about the whereabouts of her mother. But his biggest scare is for him to accept the future if that happens.

"Push!" The doctor yelled.

"A - AAAH!" Kei screamed agonizingly, tightening her grip on his hand.

In a response, he laid his head beside hers as he whispered support nothingness in her ear.

There was nothing in his head right then, but a hapless wish that he was willing to take her pain away. He knew his wife was only keeping her sufferings in, just for the sake of their child she was giving birth with.

"Almost there, Mrs. KItaooji. One big push and it'll be good."

 _One big push and this is it._ He thought.

"No matter what happens, I will always love you Gou." She whispered. The ravenhead wiped the sweat on her forehead and neck as he responded while he shook his head. "Don't say that."

 _Don't leave me._ He thought internally, as his lips trembled and his eyes watered. His breath hitched when he felt her touch on his face. He then kissed her palm that was resting on his cheek.

"One final BIG push, alright? PUSH!"

"Um - UAGH!... AAAH!"

 _"WA - WAAAH!"_

That wail halted all of their movements. From his position, he leered towards the sound. There, he saw an infant on the hands of the doctor.

"It's a cute little girl! Congratulations for the both of you!"

Tears of joy flowed on his face. At last, she showed up. The gift of their undying love. His pride and joy. His princess -

"Kei, she's here! She's - Kei?" As he looked over, he saw her eyes were rolling backwards, eyebrows scrunched, and her breathing came in gasps.

"Kei?" He shook her shoulders. "Kei?!" When he saw her eyes coming back to normal, he calmed down a bit.

"Did she?... " She asked on a weak voice.

"Yeah... she's beautiful." He said as he caressed her short black locks.

"Thank goodness... "

The next words she uttered brought another set of tears on his face.

"So I guess this is it... Heh... My heart, Gou... It really hurts... "

He hiccupped, "... Please, don't say that!" He then hugged her, but was stopped with her hands wiping away the tears from his eyes.

"Gou-koi... What's with the face?"

No matter how hard he tried to stop, his tears kept on streaming his face. But she continued wiping them as she spoked. "Aww... Shhh... Stop crying, Gou - AGH!"

Kei clutched her left chest as she screamed in pain. Kitaooji tried to ask - shout - at the paramedics, when a hand stopped him. He gulped his own saliva multiple times as he looked at her and said, "Don't give up, honey. I'm here for you - " When he saw her eyes rolling back, he panicked. "HEY! NO, NO, NO!"

When his dear wife was catching a large amount of air, he knew that this was it. He closed his eyes as he felt her grip on his hand weakened gradually.

 _"Gou... I love you... "_

BEEEP...

Her hand fell from his grip as he heard a long sound from the heart machine.

When he opened his eyes, he saw her fell into a long, deep peaceful sleep. Her face, drained with color, _looked like a bliss_.

And that's when he finally reacted. He kissed her still-warm stiff lips with his as he hugged her for the longest time.

"... Kei, I love you, too... I love you...so much... "

He was still holding her as he cried.

It was then a little later that he found himself devoid of emotion carrying a bundle, sitting with Kawanaka and Takami. He never noticed how many of his friends, acquaintances and family members patted his shoulder, saying theirs congratulations and condolences.

But, when all of them asked the name of the child, he only stated one word:

 _"Akemi."_

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

A tap on his window caught his attention, as the owner of the hand rudely opened the door. He angrily looked as he saw Takami talking to him.

"Gou... How long are you going to make us wait? Akemi's already there and - Hey, are you okay?" Upon sight of his tears, he placed his hand on his shoulder, only for him to be shrugged out.

The ravenhead momentarily looked over to find a box of tissues as he answered, " No, a bug caught my eye." After wiping his face, he turned to face the other, only for his to receive a raised eyebrow.

He just rolled his eyes as he answered, "Well, it doesn't essentially make me a girl if I cry, right?"

The batting prodigy just chuckled as he led the other out the car and into the school building. "You're right."

When they reached the school's gym, he saw his daughter Akemi waving her hands as she mouthed, 'Good luck, Dad.'

"... one of the best batters of the Pacific League. Please welcome, Kitaooji Gou!"

He went to the stage as he heard the applause and cheers from the audience. That's when he noticed both Lycaons' and Mariners' teams were there, almost taking over the space for parents. He just sighed as he took the microphone that was passed to him.

"Thank you for the introduction... " He then bowed his head, then he continued. "I wouldn't be saying 'the best...' I mean, come on! We were just defeated by the Lycaons." The audience laughed, as the players hooted.

After that moment, he said, "I will not going to perform a batting practice here, I dont want my team to pay for another set of damages because of me." The audience laughed for the second time, while the players yelled 'Backscreen Smash King!'

"Anyway," he said after the laughter died down, "I hoped you like this... " He then sat in fron of the piano as a round of applause reverberated the gym. He then struck the first chords of the piano piece Kei taught him with closed eyes, remebering all sweet things happened between them.

 _My Kei. My Finnesse._

oooOOO***Finesse***OOOooo

 **You are now free to KILL ME NOW. I wanna cry hard.**

 ***insert crying sounds here***

 **Acknowledgements to the song which kept on bugging me up until this very moment, 'All I Ask' by Adele. Her song is not only about breakups, but a tragic romance, too. If you listened to the song, you will see what I mean.**

 **Also, Finesse is a real deal. It's a light piano piece, and my favorite. The tone and melody is really happy, but for me, several of its lowest tones indicates that it hides its real emotion. And, since Gou Kitaohji (according to the manga, this is the REAL spelling), has a very happy-go-lucky attitude, I just used him to this plot. I felt sad for him, though. Personally, I don't want to use him for this story. But I felt the need to write him down.**

 **Because... (read the trivia, its important haha XD)**

 **Trivia: When I read the manga chapter 130-something (I chose to neglect the number, because I hated that particular page), there is a comical version of One Outs at the last page... Something like 14 Outs, I'm not sure. Well, I found that Amami Taiyou and Takami Itsuki talking about Tokuchi Toua's lip reading ability... Then I saw Amami saying Kitaohji accepting the trade 'just to buy a house for his kids.' When I read that, I was owl-ish eyed, saying 'Nuuu!' Then I just remebered Justin Beiber's song 'That Should Be Me.' You got the idea, right? So blame them for the creation of this fanfic - no, not me. I'm innocent *puppy eyes* Now you understand why I chose to forget about the chapter number.**

 **Koi is a shortened Japanese word 'Koishii,' which means 'Dearest.'**

 **Now, KEI, I hope you like this...**

 **And Alyx, this one is for you, as well.**

 **To all of the other readers, this is also for you. I hope this is not bland for your taste. Please, let me know what you think!**


End file.
